Rajya Sabha Polls For 19 Seats Today: The Number Game Explained

Of the 19 seats where polling will be held, four each are from Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, three each from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, two from Jharkhand, and one each from Manipur, Mizoram, and Meghalaya.

(RSTV/PTI Photo)

New Delhi: 19 Rajya Sabha seats, 8 states, the stage is all set. All eyes are set to witness a close battle between the BJP and Congress in the rajya Sabha elections 2020.  The polling will start at 9 am and conclude at 4 pm. The counting of the votes will be done on the same day at 5 pm.  Of the 19 seats where polling will be held, four each are from Andhra Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh three each from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, two from Jharkhand, and one each from Manipur, Meghalaya and Mizoram.

States	Seats
Andhra Pradesh	4
Andhra Pradesh	4
Madhya Pradesh	3
Rajasthan	3
Jharkhand	2
Manipur	1
Meghalaya	1
Mizoram	1

Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan are likely to see a close contest as the two parties — BJP and Congress are engaged in a fierce battle to win maximum seats. Gujarat has 4 seats going to the polls and the Congress is on the backfoot after three of its MLAs resigned in June and five in March. The party is reduced to 65, short of 6 MLAs to win the second seat. The Congress claimed that it is short of just one vote for the second candidate to win. Congress in-charge Rajiv Satav said, "we are hopeful to win both the seats and have the required numbers." The BJP has fielded three candidates -- Abhay Bharadwaj, Ramila Bara, and Narhari Amin -- for the four seats, while the Congress, which has seen desertions in its legislative ranks, has given tickets to two nominees Shaktisinh Gohil and Bharatsinh Solanki. The BJP, with its current numbers in the 182-member assembly, can win two seats, while the Congress on the basis of its House strength can bag one. A tough fight is expected for the fourth seat. Considering that the effective strength of the assembly is reduced to 172, a candidate will require the support of a minimum of 35 MLAs to win, as per the RS election standard formula. The faith of the fourth seat will be decided by the two Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) MLAs and one of the NCP. According To a report by IANS sources in the BJP said the lone NCP MLA Kandhal Jadeja has attended the BJP legislature party meet and the party's numbers have now gone up to 104 in the state. But the BJP is still short of one vote as it needs 105 votes to get all its three candidates elected. In Rajasthan though, the Congress is comfortably placed but the BJP is trying hard to get the second seat as there are four candidates in the fray for the three Rajya Sabha seats in the state. Congress sources say that they will easily manage both the seats though the BSP has raised objection to its six MLAs who have merged with the party. Congress has lodged its MLAs in a resort. The BJP has fielded Onkar Singh Lakhawat as the fourth candidate. In the high profile election in Madhya Pradesh, where Jyotiraditya Scindia is in the fray after whose revolt the Congress government fell, the second Congress candidate Phool Singh Baraiya will find it tough to get elected but the Congress is preparing to challenge it in court. Digvijaya Singh is slated to bag one Rajya Sabha seat. The latest coup for the Congress and some reprieve has come from Manipur in the North East where the party was able to reverse 'Operation Kamal'.. The Congress has fielded T Mangi Babu and the BJP has fielded former King Leishemba Sanajaoba. "The BJP is on the verge of losing the seat and the government in Manipur. The BJP was busy in poaching in big states and we have pulled the carpet from under their feet in Manipur. This is the 'beginning of the end' of the BJP in the northeast," said a Congress leader of Manipur. In Meghalaya, the ruling National People’s Party has fielded Wanwei Roy Kharlukhi while the opposition Congress has nominated Kennedy Cornelius Khyiem. for Rajya Sabha polls 2020. Assembly arithmetic shows that Kharlukhi has an upper hand over Khyiem as the NPP led alliance has 39 MLAs in the 60-member House. The opposition Congress-led alliance has 21 members. In Mizoram, polling will take place for one seat which is witnessing a triangular contest. The ruling Mizo National Front (MNF) has fielded the party’s national core committee member K Kanlalvena, while the Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) and the Congress nominated B Lalchhanzova and Lallianchhunga respectively. In the 40-member Mizoram Assembly, the MNF has 27 members, ZPM seven, Congress five, and the BJP has one MLA. In Jharkhand, the Congress was hoping that Chief Minister Soren will muster the numbers but it seems that Congress candidate Shahzada Anwar will not make it to the Upper House. However, Congress in-charge of the state R.P.N. Singh said, "We are trying to impress the MLAs to vote for the Congress as BJP was short of two." But sources say that AJSU will support the BJP, so now Shibu Soren of the JMM and Deepak Prakash of the BJP are comfortably placed to enter the Rajya Sabha polls from Jharkhand. In Andhra Pradesh, the Jagan Reddy-led YSR Congress is expected to fork ahead and win all the four seats given its formidable strength against the powerless TDP in the state assembly. Notably, this is the first Rajya Sabha election post the state’s bifurcation in 2014 into Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Also watch| Chinese media's misinformation campaign against the Indian government